The Toy Industry Association is currently accepting toy, game, and property nominations for 12 product categories to be considered for the 2013 Toy of the Year Awards. Nominations must include a 75-word description of the product and a statement, up to 300 words, stating why the product should be on the ballot. A new category, e-Connected Toy of the Year, has been added this year to recognize toys that interact with smartphones, tablets, or gaming devices. Also new is the expanded definition for Innovative Toy of the Year award. This category will include toys that use the latest technology and have innovative designs and manufacturing processes.

A nomination committee–including play experts, journalists, academics, retailers, and other toy experts–will reveal the final nominations at a press conference in New York City in November. The committee will consider how creative, original, and innovative a product is. It will also look at a product’s design, promotion, and market acceptance. Five ballots will be available for consumers, mass retailers, specialty retailers, media, and TIA members. A new ballot form has been created this year that will allow the committee to find if a product is being considered cross-category. Voting will open on ToyAwards.org after the press conference and continue until mid-January.

The awards ceremony, in which winners will be announced, will be held on February 9 at the Plaza Hotel.

New Products

Moose Toys launched Pikmi Pops, its newest collectible toy. Pikmi Pops come with a plush character, an assortment of surprises including stickers and charms, and a message of encouragement, which are all delivered inside a lollipop package. Each character also comes with a hang loop and a lanyard. Videos featuring Pikimi Pops have already amassed millions [...]

Elemental Path launched an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign to support its newest product in the CogniToys family, STEMosaur. The STEMosaur is a customizable toy that doubles as a learning companion for children, with a more hands-on approach featuring science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) elements, as well as lessons in coding. The Indiegogo campaign aims to raise [...]

3Doodler partnered with Cartoon Network for its 3Doodler Start Powerpuff Yourself Pen Set and Activity Kit. The kit features a special edition 3Doodler Start Pen, new themed DoodleMolds, DoodleBlocks, and a new plastic color pallete for kids to create their own Powerpuff adventures.

K’NEX brought back its Kid K’NEX building set line for kids ages 3 and up. The line is designed to get kids’ imaginations active with colorful, kid-friendly, made-in-the-USA rods, connectors, and blocks. Each set comes with building ideas or kids can come up with their own designs. The sets also aid with growing key developmental abilities [...]

Jay@Play will launch its new Playbrites Magical Fun Faces line, available at Toys “R” Us stores nationwide and online this September. Playbrites are a line of characters that light up to turn any ceiling into a magical light show. Kids can add different accessories to each character, such as eyes, ears, noses, and mouths. All [...]